This invention relates to a reinforcing block to stabilize the ground immediately after excavation, or to reinforce any banking in general, and to a method for construction of said reinforcing block.
In order to prevent excavated slopes from collapsing or to reinforce any banking in general, one conventional method of reinforcement is to drill a large number of small holes, each between 5-10 cm in diameter, into the soil; then fill the holes with grouting material into which steel rods or other reinforcing rods are embedded.
The conventional method as described is not appropriate, nor does it provide adequate reinforcement in all instances, particularly in cases where the soil is loose such as in embankments, or for construction adjacent to sites subject to heavy vibration such as railway tracks. In such cases, the conventional method has some disadvantages. For example, steel rods and similar reinforcement material have a low resistance to expulsive forces, that is, the anchorage stability per unit length of such materials is low, which necessitates the use of many rods, each of extra long length, making the system very expensive.
Alternatively, each hole could be enlarged in order to increase the anchorage stability of the steel rod, but this then destabilizes the surrounding earth. In this case, a disintegration of the soil matrix around even .just a few of the holes would result in a slide; this situation is particularly dangerous for sites around railway tracks.
Moreover, the finished shape of each reinforcing rod is not uniform, making it difficult to determine a safe anchorage force.